Unsinkable Love
by Cornelia'Red
Summary: The famous tale lovers aboard the unsinkable ship of the Titanic come to ahead as we look at the moments shared between the pair known as the high-classed Stella DeWitt Bukater and poor man Brandon Dawson: COMPLETE!


**Okay so am you may or may not have guess I have recently watched Titanic and here are a few sections of the best and most romantic parts of this film!**

**Well hope you like it, i tweeked it abit so let me know what you think.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything**

**_**

Brandon glances across the well deck. At the aft railing of B deck promenade stands Stella, in a long yellow dress and white gloves. Brandon is unable to take his eyes off of her. They are across from each other, about 60 feet apart, with the well deck like a valley between them. She on her promontory, he on his much lower one. She stares down at the water. He watches her unpin her elaborate hat and take it off. She looks at the frilly absurd thing, then tosses it over the rail. It sails far down to the water and is carried away as a spot of yellow in the vast ocean. He is riveted by her. She looks like a figure in a romantic novel, sad and isolated. Timmy taps Riven and they both look at Brandon gazin at Stella. Riven and Timmy grin at each other. Stella turns suddenly and looks right at Brandon. He is caught staring, but he doesn't look away. She does, but then looks back. Their eyes meet across the space of the well deck, across the gulf between worlds. Brandon sees a man (Sky) come up behind her and take her arm. She jerks her arm away. They argue in pantomime. She storms away, and he goes after her, disappearing along the A-deck promenade. Brandon stares after her.

"Forget it, boyo. You'd as like have angels fly out o' yer arse as get next to the likes o' her." Riven says

-

Brandon is kicked back on one of the benches gazing at the stars blazing gloriously overhead. Hearing something, he turns as Stella runs up the stairs from the well deck. They are the only two on the stern deck, she doesn't see Brandon in the shadows, and runs right past him.

As she runs across the deserted fantail. Her breath hitches in an occasional sob, which she suppresses. Stella slams against the base of the stern flagpole and clings there, panting. She stares out at the black water. Then starts to climb over the railing. She has to hitch her long dress way up, and climbing is clumsy. Moving methodically she turns her body and gets her heels on the white-painted gunwale, her back to the railing, facing out toward blackness. 60 feet below her, the massive propellers are churning the Atlantic into white foam, and a ghostly wake trails off toward the horizon. Stella is standing like a figurehead in reverse. Below her are the huge letters of the name "TITANIC". She leans out, her arms straightening... looking down hypnotized, into the vortex below her. Her dress and hair are lifted by the wind of the ship's movement. The only sound, above the rush of water below, is the flutter and snap of the big Union Jack right above her.

**"**Don't do it."

She whips her head around at the sound of his voice. It takes a second for her eyes to focus.

"Stay back! Don't come any closer!"

Brandon sees the tear tracks on her cheeks in the faint glow from the stern running lights.

**"**Take my hand. I'll pull you back in."

**"**No! Stay where you are. I mean it. I'll let go."

**"**No you won't."

**"**What do you mean no I won't? Don't presume to tell me what I will and will not do. You don't know me."

**"**You would have done it already. Now come on, take my hand."

Stella is confused now. She can't see him very well through the tears, so she wipes them with one hand, almost losing her balance.

**"**You're distracting me. Go away."

"I can't. I'm involved now. If you let go I have to jump in after you."

"Don't be absurd. You'll be killed." But he takes off his jacket.

**"**I'm a good swimmer." He starts unlacing his left shoe.

**"**The fall alone would kill you."

**"**It would hurt. I'm not saying it wouldn't. To be honest I'm a lot more concerned about the water being so cold."

She looks down. The reality factor of what she is doing is sinking in.

**"**How cold?"

**"**Freezing. Maybe a couple degrees over." He starts unlacing his right shoe.

**"**In Wisconsin they have some of the coldest winters around, and I grew up there, near Chippewa Falls. Once when I was a kid me and my father were ice-fishing out on Lake Wissota... ice-fishing's where you chop a hole in the--"

**"**I know what ice fishing is!"

"Sorry. Just... you look like kind of an indoor girl. Anyway, I went through some thin ice and I'm tellin' ya, water that cold... like that right down there... it hits you like a thousand knives all over your body. You can't breath, you can't think... least not about anything but the pain. Which is why I'm not looking forward to jumping in after you. But like I said, I don't see a choice. I guess I'm kinda hoping you'll come back over the rail and get me off the hook here."

**"**You're crazy."

"That's what everybody says. But with all due respect, I'm not the one hanging off the back of a ship." He slides one step closer, like moving up on a spooked horse.

**"**Come on. You don't want to do this. Give me your hand." Stella stares at this madman for a long time. She looks at his eyes and they somehow suddenly seem to fill her universe.

**"**Alright." She unfastens one hand from the rail and reaches it around toward him. He reaches out to take it, firmly.

**"**I'm Brandon Dawson."

**"**Pleased to meet you, Mr. Dawson."

_

Sky comes down the stairs, with Luna on his arm, covered in jewelry. They both walk right past Brandon, neither one recognizing him. Sky nods at him, one gent to another, but Brandon barely has time to be amused. Because just behind Sky and Luna on the stairs is Stella, a vision in red and black, her low-cut dress showing off her neck and shoulders, her arms seethed in white gloves that come well above above the elbow. Brandon is hypnotized by her beauty.

As Stella approaches Brandon, he imitates the gentleman's stance, hand behind his back. She extends her gloved hand and he takes it, kissing the back of her fingers. Stella flushes, beaming noticeably. She can't take her eyes off him.

**"**Sky, surely you remember Mr. Dawson."

"Dawson! I didn't recognize you." Sky says caught off guard and studies him "Amazing! You could almost pass for a gentlemen."

Bloom grins when she sees Brandon. As they are going into the dining saloon she walks next to him, speaking low

**"**Ain't nothin' to it, is there, Brandon?"

"Yeah, you just dress like a pallbearer and keep your nose up." he mutters

"Remember, the only thing they respect is money, so just act like you've got a lot of it and you're in the club." As they enter the swirling throng, Stella leans close to him, pointing out several notables.

**"**J.J., Madeleine, I'd like you to meet Brandon Dawson." Mimi says

"Good to meet you Brandon. Are you of the Boston Dawson's?

**"**No, the Chippewa Falls Dawson's, actually." J.J. nods as if he's heard of them, then looks puzzled.

**"**Tell us of the accommodations in steerage, Mr. Dawson. I hear they're quite good on this ship." Luna says. Brandon is seated opposite Stella, who is flanked by Sky and an old family friend. Also at the table are Bloom, Ismay, Colonel Gracie, the Countess, Guggenheim, Madame Aubert, and the Astors.

**"**The best I've seen, m'am. Hardly any rats." Brandon grins Stella motions surreptitiously for Brandon to take his napkin off his plate.

**"**Mr. Dawson is joining us from third class. He was of some assistance to my fiancee last night. (to Tai, as if to a child) This is foie gras. It's goose liver." Sky says

"No caviar for me, thanks." Brandon says to the waiter he then turns to Sky "Never did like it much." He looks at Stella, poker faced, and she smiles.

**"**And where exactly do you live, Mr. Dawson?" Luna asks

**"**Well, right now my address is the RMS Titanic. After that, I'm on God's good humor." Salad is served.

**"**You find that sort of rootless existence appealing, do you?" Luna continues

"Well... it's a big world, and I want to see it all before I go. My father was always talkin' about goin' to see the ocean. He died in the town he was born in, and never did see it. You can't wait around, because you never know what hand you're going to get dealt next. See, my folks died in a fire when I was fifteen, and I've been on the road since. Somethin' like that teaches you to take life as it comes at you. To make each day count." Bloom raises her glass in a salute.

**"**Well said, Brandon."

Stella raises her glass, looking at Brandon.

**"**To making it count." Stella says and Luna is annoyed that Brandon has scored a point and presses him further.

**"**How is it you have the means to travel, Mr. Dawson?" Satoe says

"I work my way from place to place. Tramp steamers and such. I won my ticket on Titanic here in a lucky hand at poker." He glances at Stella

"A very lucky hand."

_

Crowd was alive with music, laughter and raucous carrying on. A band is gathered near the upright piano, honking out lively stomping music on fiddle, accoridon and tambourine. People of all ages are dancing, drinking beer and wine, smoking, laughing, even brawling. Riven hands Stella a pint of stout and she hoists it. Brandon meanwhile dances with 5 year old Cora Cartmell, or tries to, with her standing on his feet. As the tune ends, Stella leans down to the little girl.

**"**May I cut in, miss?" Stella asks

"You're still my best girl, Cora." Brandon smiles as Cora scampers off. Stella and Brandon face each other. She is trembling as he takes her right hand in his left. His other hand slides to the small of her back. It is an electrifying moment.

"I don't know the steps." Stella squeaks

"Just move with me. Don't think." The music starts and they are off. A little awkward at first, she starts to get into it. She grins at Brandon as she starts to get the rhythm of the steps.

"Wait... stop!" Stella yells she bends down, pulling off her high heeled shoes, and flings them to Timmy. Then she grabs Brandon and they plunge back into the fray, dancing faster as the music speeds up.

A table is knocked over as a drunk crashes into it. And in the middle of it... Stella dancing with Brandon in her stocking feet. The steps are fast and she shines with sweat. A space opens around them, and people watch them, clapping as the band plays faster and faster. He whirls her, then she responds by whirling him. Brandon steps away from Stella with a flourish, allowing her to take a bow. Exhilarated and slightly tipsy, she does a graceful ballet ployer, feet turned out perfectly. Everyone laughs and applauds. Stella is a hit with the steerage folks, who've never had a lady party with them. They move to a table, flushed and sweaty. Stella grabs Riven's cigarette and takes a big drag. She's feeling cocky. Riven is grinning, holding hands with Helga.

Timmy walks up with a pint for each of them, Stella chugs hers, showing off.

**"**You think a first class girl can't drink?"

Everybody else is dancing again, and Bjorn Gundersen crashes into Riven, who sloshes his beer over Stella's dress. She laughs, not caring. But Riven lunges, grabbing Bjorn and wheeling him around.

**"**Boys, boys! Did I ever tell you the one about the Swede and the Irishman goin' to the whorehouse?" Brandon asks stepping between them Izzy stands there, all piss and vinegar, chest puffed up. Then he grins and claps Bjorn on the shoulder.

**"**So, you think you're big tough men? Let's see you do this."

In her stocking feet she assumes a ballet stance, arms raised, and goes up on point, taking her entire weight on the tips of her toes. The guys gape at her incredible muscle control. She comes back down, then her face screws up in pain. She grabs one foot, hopping around.

**"**Oooowww! I haven't done that in years." Brandon catches her as she loses her balance, and everyone cracks up.

_

Brandon closes the door behind her, and glances out through the ripple-glass window to the starboard rail, where the gym instructor is chatting up the woman who was riding the bike. Stella and Brandon are alone in the room.

**"**Brandon, this is impossible. I can't see you." He takes her by the shoulders.

**"**Stella, you're no picnic... you're a spoiled little brat even, but under that you're a strong, pure heart, and you're the most amazingly astounding girl I've ever known and--"

"Brandon, I--"

**"**No wait. Let me try to get this out. You're amazing... and I know I have nothing to offer you, Stella. I know that. But I'm involved now. You jump, I jump, remember? I can't turn away without knowin' that you're goin' to be alright."

Stella feels the tears coming to her eyes Brandon is so open and real... not like anyone she has ever known.

"You're making this very hard. I'll be fine. Really."

"I don't think so. They've got you in a glass jar like some butterfly, and you're goin' to die if you don't break out. Maybe not right away, 'cause you're strong. But sooner or later the fire in you is goin' to go out."

"It's not up to you to save me, Brandon"

**"**You're right. Only you can do that."

"I have to get back, they'll miss me. Please, Brandon, for both our sakes, leave me alone."

_

**"**Hello, Brandon."

He turns and she is standing there.

**"**I changed my mind." He smiles at her, his eyes drinking her in. Her cheeks are red with the chill wind, and her eyes sparkle. Her hair blows wildly about her face.

**"**Timmy said you might be up--"

"Sssshh. Come here."

He puts his hands on her waist. As if he is going to kiss her.

**"**Close your eyes."

She does, and he turns her to face forward, the way the ship is going. He presses her gently to the rail, standing right behind her. Then he takes her two hands and raises them until she is standing with her arms outstretched on each side. Stella is going along with him. When he lowers his hands, her arms stay up... like wings.

**"**Okay. Open them."

Stella gasps. There is nothing in her field of vision but water. It's like there is no ship under them at all, just the two of them soaring. The Atlantic unrolls toward her, a hammered copper shield under a dusk sky. There is only the wind, and the hiss of the water 50 feel below.

**"**I'm flying!" She leans forward, arching her back. He puts his hands on her waist to steady her.

"Come Josephine in my flying machine..." Brandon sings softly Stella closes her eyes, feeling herself floating weightless far above the sea. She smiles dreamily, then leans back, gently pressing her back against his chest. He pushes forward slightly against her. Slowly he raises his hands, arms outstretched, and they meet hers... fingertips gently touching. Then their fingers intertwine. Moving slowly, their fingers caress through and around each other like the bodies of two lovers.

Brandon tips his face forward into her blowing hair, letting the scent of her wash over him, until his cheek is against her ear. Stella turns her head until her lips are near his. She lowers her arms, turning further, until she finds his mouth with hers. He wraps his arms around her from behind, and they kiss like this with her head turned and tilted back, surrendering to him, to the emotion, to the inevitable. They kiss, slowly and tremulously, and then with building passion. Brandon and the ship seem to merge into one force of power and optimism, lifting her, buoying her forward on a magical journey, soaring onward into a night without fear.

_

Clunck! She unlocks the safe. Glancing up, she meets his eyes in the mirror behind the safe. She opens it and removes the necklace, then holds it out to Brandon who takes it nervously.

**"**What is it? A sapphire?"

"A diamond. A very rare diamond, called the Heart of the Ocean."

Brandon gazes at wealth beyond his comprehension.

**"**I want you to draw me like your French girl. Wearing this." she smiles at him "Wearing only this."

He looks up at her, surprised.

She shakes her head and her hair falls free around her shoulders. Brandon is laying out his pencils like surgical tools. His sketchbook is open and ready. He looks up as she comes into the room, wearing a silk kimono.

**"**The last thing I need is another picture of me looking like a china doll. As a paying customer, I expect to get what I want." She hands him a dime and steps back, parting the kimono. Her heart is pounding as she slowly lowers the robe. Brandon looks so stricken, it is almost comical. The kimono drops to the floor.

**"**Tell me when it looks right to you." She poses on the small sofa,

"Uh... just bend your left leg a little and... and lower your head. Eyes to me. That's it." Brandon starts to sketch. He drops his pencil and she stifles a laugh.

**"**I believe you are blushing, Mr. Big Artiste. I can't imagine Monsieur Monet blushing."

**"**He does landscapes."

Brandon's eyes come up to look at her over the top edge of his sketchpad. It is an image she will carry the rest of her life. Despite his nervousness, he draws with sure strokes, and what emerges is the best thing he has ever done. Her pose is languid, her hands beautiful, and her eyes radiate her energy.

_

Stella and Brandon come out of her stateroom, closing the door. She leads him quickly along the corridor toward the B deck foyer. They are halfway across the open space when the sitting room door opens in the corridor and Codatorta comes out. The valet sees Brandon and Stella and hustles after them.

**"**Come on!" She and Brandon break into a run, surprising the few ladies and gentlemen about. Stella leads him past the stairs to the bank of elevators. They run into one, shocking the hell out of the operator

**"**Take us down. Quickly, quickly!" Stella yells the Operator scrambles to comply. Brandon even helps him close the steel gate. Codatorta runs up as the lift starts to descend. He slams one hand on the bars of the gate.

Brandon and Stella are leaning against a wall, laughing.

**"**Pretty tough for a valet, this fella." Brandon laughs

"He's an ex-Pinkerton. Sky's father hired him to keep Sky out of trouble... to make sure he always got back to the hotel with his wallet and watch, after some crawl through the less reputable parts of town..." Stella explains

"Kinda like we're doin' right now-- uh oh!"

Codatorta has spotted them from a cross-corridor nearby. He charges toward them. v and Stella run around a corner into a blind alley. There is one door, marked crew only, and Brandon flings it open. They enter a roaring ran room, with no way out but a ladder going down. Brandon latches the deadbolt on the door, and Codatorta slams against it a moment later. Brandon grins at Stella, pointing to the ladder.

**"**After you, m'lady."

Brandon and Stella come down the escape ladder and look around in amazement. It is like a vision of hell itself, with the roaring furnaces and black figures moving in the smoky glow. They run the length of the boiler room, dodging amazed stokers, and trimmers with their wheelbarrows of coal.

"Carry on! Don't mind us!" Brandon yells

Brandon and Stella enter and run laughing between the rows of stacked cargo. She hugs herself against the cold, after the dripping heat of the boiler room. They come upon William Carter's brand new Renault touring car. Stella climbs into the plushly upholstered back seat, acting very royal. Brandon jumps into the driver's seat, enjoying the feel of the leather and wood.

**"**Where to, Miss?"

"To the stars."

As her hands come out of the shadows and pull him over the seat into the back. He lands next to her, and his breath seems loud in the quiet darkness. He looks at her and she is smiling. It is the moment of truth.

**"**Are you nervous?" He asks

"Au contraire, mon cher." He strokes her face, cherishing her. She kisses his artist's fingers. He kisses her, and she slides down in the seat under his welcome weight.

-

The rear window of the Renault is completely fogged up. Stella's hand comes up and slams against the glass for a moment, making a hand print in the veil of condensation.

Inside the car Brandon's overcoat is like a blanket over them. It stirs and Stella pulls it down. They are huddled under it, intertwined. Their faces are flushed and they look at each other wonderingly. She puts her hand on his face, as if making sure he is real.

**"**You're trembling."

"It's okay. I'm alright." He lays his cheek against her chest. She hugs his head to her chest, and just holds on for dear life.

_

Sky and Luna wait in the sitting room, along with the Master at Arms and two stewards. Silence as Stella and Brandon enter. Luna closes her robe at her throat when she sees Brandon.

**"**Something serious has happened." Stella begins

**"**That's right. Two things dear to me have disappeared this evening. Now that one is back..." Sky says as he looks from Stella to Brandon "... I have a pretty good idea where to fine the other." he turns to the Master at Arms "Search him."

The Master at Arms steps up to Brandon.

**"**Coat off, mate."

Codatorta pulls Brandon's coat and shakes his head in dismay, shrugging out of it. The Master at Arms pats him down.

**"**This is horseshit." Brandon says

"Sky, you can't be serious! We're in the middle of an emergency and you--" Stella begins but is interrupted Steward Barnes pulls the Heart of the Ocean out of the pocket of Brandon's coat.

**"**Is this it?" Stella is stunned needless to say, so is Brandon.

**"**That's it." Sky says

**"**Right then. Now don't make a fuss." He starts to handcuff Brandon.

**"**Don't you believe it, Stella. Don't!" Brandon yells

"He couldn't have." Stella whispers

**"**Of course he could. Easy enough for a professional. He memorized the combination when you opened the safe." Sky says

"But I was with him the whole time."

"Maybe he did it while you were putting your clothes back on." Sky says low and cold

**"**They put it in my pocket!" Brandon yells again

"It's not even your pocket, son. 'Property of A. L. Ryerson'." Codatorta shows the coat to the Master at Arms. There is a label inside the collar with the owner's name.

**"**That was reported stolen today."

**"**I was going to return it! Stella--" Stella feels utterly betrayed, hurt and confused. She shrinks away from him. He starts shouting to her as Codatorta and the Master at Arms drag him out into the hall. She can't look him in the eye.

"Stella, don't listen to them... I didn't do this! You know I didn't! You know it!"

She is devastated. Her mother lays a comforting hand on her shoulder as the tears well up.

_

**"**Brandon? BRANDON!?" Stella screams

Brandon is hopelessly pulling on the pipe again, straining until he turns red. He collapses back on the bench. realizing he's screwed. Then he hears her through the door.

**"**STELLA!! In here!"

She spins and runs back, locating the right door, then pushes it open, creating a small wave. She splashes over Brandon and puts her arms around him.

**"**Brandon, Brandon, Brandon... I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

**"**That guy Codatorta put it in my pocket."

"I know, I know."

"See if you can find a key for these. Try those drawers. It's a little brass one." She kisses his face and hugs him again, then starts to go through the desk.

**"**So... how did you find out I didn't do it?"

**"**I didn't." she looks at him "I just realized I already knew."

They share a look, then she goes back to ransacking the room, searching drawers and cupboards.

**"**There's no key in here!" Stella yells they look around at the water, now almost two feet deep. Brandon has pulled his feet up onto the bench.

**"**You have to go for help." Brandon says

"I'll be right back."

5 minutes later Brandon has climbed up on the bench, and is hugging the water pipe. Stella wades in, holding the axe above her head.

**"**Will this work?"

"We'll find out."

They are both terrified, but trying to keep panic at bay. He positions the chain connecting the two cuffs, stretching it taut across the steel pipe. The chain is of course very short, and his exposed wrists are on either side of it.

**"**Try a couple practice swings." Stella hefts the axe and thunks it into a wooden cabinet.

**"**Good now try to hit the same mark again." She swings hard and the blade thunks in four inches from the mark.

"Okay, that's enough practice." He winces, bracing himself as she raises the axe. She has to hit a target about an inch wide with all the force she can muster, with his hands on either side.

**"**You can do it, Stella. Hit it as hard as you can, I trust you." Brandon says sounding calm he closes his eyes. So does she. The axe comes down. Stella gingerly opens her eyes looks... Brandon is grinning with two separate cuffs. Stella drops the axe, all the strength going out of her.

**"**Nice work, there, Paul Bunyan." He climbs down into the water next to her. He can't breathe for a second.

**"**Shit! Excuse my French. Ow ow ow, that is cold! Come on, let's go." They wade out into the hall. Stella starts toward the stairs going up, but Brandon stops her. There is only about a foot of the stairwell opening visible.

"Too deep. We gotta find another way out."

_

Crash! A wooden door frame splinters and the door bursts open under the force of Brandon's shoulder. Brandon and Stella stumble through, into the corridor.A steward, who was nearby herding people along, marches over.

**"**Here you! You'll have to pay for that, you know. That's White Star Line property--"

Brandon and Stella turn around together and yell

"SHUT UP!"

_

**"**I'm not going without you."

"Get in the boat, Stella."

Sky walks up just then.

**"**Yes. Get in the boat, Stella." She is shocked to see him. She steps instinctively to Brandon

**"**Quickly, ladies. Step into the boat. Hurry, please!" A crew member shouts

"Go on. I'll get the next one." Brandon smiles

"No. Not without you!" She doesn't even care that Sky is standing right there. He sees the emotion between Brandon and Stella and his jaw clenches. But then he leans close to her and says...

**"**There are boats on the other side that are allowing men in. Brandon and I can get off safely. Both of us."

Brandon smiles reassuringly "I'll be alright. Hurry up so we can get going... we got our own boat to catch."

"Get in... hurry up, it's almost full." Sky says as a crew member grabs her arm and pulls her toward the boat. She reaches out for Brandon and her fingers brush his for a moment. Then she finds herself stepping down into the boat. It's all a rush and blur.

"Lower away!"

The two men watch at the rail as the boat begins to descend.

**"**You're a good liar Brandon"

"Almost as good as you."

"I always win, Brandon. One way or another." looks at him, smiling "Pity I didn't keep that drawing. It's going to be worth a lot more by morning."

Brandon knows he is screwed. He looks down at Stella, not wanting to waste a second of his last view of her.

The ropes going through the pulleys as the seamen start to lower. All sound going away... Crew giving orders, his lips moving... but Stella hears only the blood pounding in her ears... this cannot be happening... a rocket bursts above in slow-motion, outlining Brandon... Stella's hair blowing in slow motion as she gazes up at him, descending away from him... she sees his hand trembling, the tears at the corners of his eyes, and cannot believe the unbearable pain she is feeling... Stella is still staring up, tears pouring down her face. Suddenly she lunges across the women next to her. Reaches the gunwale, climbing it... Hurls herself out of the boat to the rail of the A-Deck promenade, catching it, and scrambling over the rail. The Boat 2 continues down. But Stella is back on Titanic.

**"**No Stella! NOOOO!!" Brandon spins from the rail, running for the nearest way down to A-Deck. Sky too has seen her jump. She is willing to die for this man, this gutter scum. He is overwhelmed by a rage so all consuming it eclipses all thought.

Brandon bangs through the doors to the foyer and sprints down the stairs. He sees her coming into A-deck foyer, running toward him, Sky's long coat flying out behind her as she runs. They meet at the bottom of the stairs, and collide in an embrace.

**"**Stella, Stella, you're so stupid, you're such an idiot-- " And all the while he's kissing her and holding her as tight as he can.

**"**You jump, I jump, right?"

"Right."

_

Brandon and Stella lie side by side on what was the vertical face of the hull, gripping the railing, which is now horizontal. Just beneath their feet are the gold letters TITANIC emblazoned across the stern. Stella stares down terrified at the black ocean waiting below to claim them. Brandon looks to his left and sees a man, crouching on the hull, holding onto the railing. It is a surreal moment.

The final relentless plunge begins as the stern section floods. Looking down a hundred feet to the water, they drop like an elevator.

"Take a deep breath and hold it right before we go into the water. The ship will suck us down. Kick for the surface and keep kicking. Don't let go of my hand. We're gonna make it Stella. Trust me." Brandon explain quickly she stares at the water coming up at them, and grips his hand harder.

**"**I trust you."

The name TITANIC disappears, and the tiny figures of Brandon and Stella vanish under the water. Where the ship stood, now there is nothing. Only the black ocean.

Brandon rises kicking hard for the surface... holding tightly to Stella, pulling her up. Over a thousand people are now floating where the ship went down. Some are stunned, gasping for breath. Others are crying, praying, moaning, shouting... screaming. Brandon and Stella surface among them. They barely have time to gasp for air before people are clawing at them. People driven insane by the water, 4 degrees below freezing, a cold so intense it is indistinguishable form death by fire. A man pushes Stellai under, trying to climb on top of her... senselessly trying to get out of the water, to climb onto anything. Brandon punches him repeatedly, pulling her free.

**"**Swim, Stella! SWIM!" he yells She tries, but her strokes are not as effective as his because of her life-jacket. They break out of the clot of people. He has to find some kind of flotation, anything to get her out of the freezing water.

**"**Keep swimming. Keep moving. Come one, you can do it." All about them there is a tremendous wailing, screaming and moaning... a chorus of tormented souls. And beyond that... nothing but black water stretching to the horizon.

_

**"**The boats will come back for us, Stella. Hold on just a little longer. They had to row away for the suction and now they'll be coming back."

She nods, his words helping her. She is shivering uncontrollably, her lips blue and her teeth chattering.

**"**Thank God for you Brandon."

Brandon and Stella drift under the blazing stars. The water is glassy, with only the faintest undulating swell. Stella can actually see the stars reflecting on the black mirror of the sea. Brandon squeezes the water out of her long coat, tucking it in tightly around her legs. He rubs her arms. His face is chalk with in the darkness.

**"**It's getting quiet." she whispers

"Just a few more minutes. It'll take them a while to get the boats organized..."

Stella is unmoving, just staring into space. She knows the truth. There won't be any boats.

"I don't know about you, but I intend to write a strongly worded letter to the White Star Line about all this." Brandon jokes she laughs weakly, but it sounds like a gasp of fear. Stella finds his eyes in the dim light.

**"**I love you Brandon."

He takes her hand.

**"**No... don't say your good-byes, Stella. Don't you give up. Don't do it."

"I'm so cold."

"You're going to get out of this... you're going to go on and you're going to make babies and watch them grow and you're going to die an old lady, warm in your bed. Not here. Not this night. Do you understand me?"

"I can't feel my body."

"Stella, listen to me. Listen. Winning that ticket was the best thing that ever happened to me." Brandon is having trouble getting the breath to speak."It brought me to you. And I'm thankful, Stella. I'm thankful."

His voice is trembling with the cold which is working it's way to his heart. But his eyes are unwavering.

**"**You must do me this honor... promise me you will survive... that you will never give up... no matter what happens... no matter how hopeless... promise me now, and never let go of that promise." he says

**"**I promise." she whispers

"Never let go."

"I promise. I will never let go, Brandon. I'll never let go."

She grips his hand and they lie with their heads together.

Brandon and Stella floating in the black water they are absolutely still. Their hands are locked together. Stella is staring upwards at the canopy of stars wheeling above her. She knows she is dying. Her lips barely move as she sings a scrap of Brandon's song:

"Come Josephine in my flying machine..."

A shooting star flares... a line of light across the heavens her hair is dusted with frost crystals. Her breathing is so shallow, she is almost motionless.

The silhouette of a boat crossing the stars. She sees men in it, rowing so slowly the oars lift out of the syrupy water, leaving weightless pearls floating in the air. The voices of the men sound slow and distorted. Then the lookout flashes his torch toward her and the light flares across the water, silhouetting the bobbing corpses in between. It flicks past her motionless form and moves on. The boat is 50 feet away, and moving past her. The men look away. Stella lifts her head to turn to Brandon.

**"**Brandon."

She touches his shoulder with her free hand. He doesn't respond. Stella gently turns his face toward her. It is rimed with frost. He seems to be sleeping peacefully. But he is not asleep. Stella can only stare at his still face as the realization goes through her.

"Brandon...wake up...the boats...are back...Brandon...wake up....please...Brandon..."

**"**Oh, Brandon." All hope, will and spirit leave her. She looks at the boat. It is further away now, the voices fainter. Stella watches them go. She closes her eyes. She is so weak, and there just seems to be no reason to even try. And then... her eyes snap open. She raises her head suddenly, cracking the ice as she rips her hair off the wood. She calls out, but her voice is so weak they don't hear her. The boat is invisible now, the torch light a star impossibly far away. She struggles to draw breath, calling again.

Stella struggles to move. Her hand, she realizes, is actually frozen to Brandon's. She breaths on it, melting the ice a little, and gently unclasps their hands, breaking away a thin tinkling film.

**"**I won't let go. I promise."

She releases him and he sinks into the black water. He seems to fade out like a spirit returning to some immaterial plane.

_

Stella is covered with a woollen shawl and walking with a group of steerage passengers. Immigration officers are asking them questions as they come off the gangway.

**"**Name?"

"Dawson, Stella Dawson"

_

The wreck of the Titanic looms like a ghost out of the dark. It is lit by a kind of moonlight, a light of the mind. The echoing sound of distant waltz music is heard. The rust fades away from the walls of the dark corridor and it is transformed... The grand staircase, is lit by glowing chandelier. The music is vibrant now, and the room is populated by men in tie and tails, women in gowns. It is exquisitely beautiful.

The crowd of beautiful gentlemen and ladies turn as she descends towards them. At the bottom a man stands with his back to her... he turns and it is Brandon. Smiling he holds his hand out toward her.

Stella goes into his arms. The passengers, officers and crew of the RMS Titanic smile and applaud in the utter silence of the abyss. Where true love is found everywhere...

Even at the bottom of the ocean.

_

**Yeahh I know bits are a bit cheesy but the story is right?**

**Anyway please review thankyou!**

**CJR.x**


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